12. The coffee market is one of the most globalized and volatile commodity markets in existence. In terms of the value of trade, it is second only to oil. Coffee is produced in over seventy countries, primarily lower-income nations in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. In recent years, a movement has developed supporting “fair trade coffee,” which seeks to better the conditions and increase the incomes of coffee producers.

Read the following sources and list the main arguments for and against the fair trade coffee movement, as delineated in the articles. Comment on any similarities you see between fair trade coffee policy and the case of Nike in Vietnam (as discussed in the chapter’s Evidence-

Based Economics feature).

“The Fair Trade Debate” in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade_debate.“Coffee” from Fair Trade International: http://www.fairtrade.net/coffee.html.